


The Loss of Innocence

by Reiya_Wakayama



Series: The price for the future is always unknown...until the bill comes due [2]
Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Canon-Typical Violence, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Magical Stiles Stilinski, Reconciliation, Sentient Nematon, Supernatural Elements, Torture
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-16
Updated: 2019-04-16
Packaged: 2020-01-15 03:02:39
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,630
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18489997
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Reiya_Wakayama/pseuds/Reiya_Wakayama
Summary: Stiles is still in a coma and the Alpha Pack is steadily drawing closer circles around the pack. Can they find Erica and Boyd before the worst comes to pass?





	The Loss of Innocence

**Author's Note:**

> This follows about a month and a half into the time break between season 2 and 3A. This will follow canon loosely, but not exactly.

“Has there been any change?” Isaac asks quietly, standing in front of Melissa as she types something into a computer.

She sighs sadly, “Unfortunately no. The doctors report nothing at the moment. Sadly, in cases like this, it is just a waiting game. He’ll wake up when he feels he’s ready.” She places a hand on the teen’s shoulder in comfort.

Isaac nods and continues down the hall towards a familiar door. Inside, Stiles lies on the hospital bed still hooked up to the machines. Isaac sighs and steps further in, depositing his usual weekly bouquet of flowers in the nearby vase, replacing the dying ones inside.

“Hey Stiles, it’s me again,” Isaac says softly, pulling up a chair and sitting down. He doesn’t know why he does this, he hardly knows Stiles. It just felt like Stiles was the link between all of them. He was also the last one to see Erica and Boyd and Isaac needs something to do while he’s feeling useless.

“So, the week so far: Derek and Scott have only gotten into three fights. I know impressive right? They’re starting to trust each other, especially Derek after what Scott did, well, you would know if you woke up so we could tell you all you’ve missed,” Isaac pauses to wait for the teen to respond but as usual, there’s nothing.

“There’s still no sign of Erica and Boyd or the Alpha Pack. We know they have them, that they took them after Chris let them go,” Isaac takes a breath to calm down before continuing, “Your dad’s doing good, though I’m sure you already know this since he visits you every day. He’s fine, just so you know. We keep an eye on him, make sure he eats healthy and doesn’t wear himself down. He’s still looking for Gerard and the hunters who did this to you, but…well, there wasn’t much evidence to go by and Chris isn’t giving out names.”

“Derek, of course, is blaming himself for everything. I think he’s rubbing off on Scott because he’s doing it as well and…we need you here. We’re falling apart which is funny because we all thought you were just some annoying kid that followed Scott everywhere, but, no one’s come up with a decent plan since well, you know, and no one knows how to sarcasm like you can…and no one knows how to say the right words when everyone else doesn’t have them,” Isaac whispers the last part.

He sighs again and stands. “Well, that’s it for now. Hopefully you’ll be awake before then, but if not, see you next week,” Isaac says as he usually does. The werewolf leaves downhearted and leaves the hospital to report the same thing as usual.

~*~

He’s not sure where he is at first. It’s just this huge space of white and anywhere he walks is just white, unchanging and just as boring. Eventually, he gets bored with walking and just lies there. Time goes by and every once in a while, he’ll glance around to see if there has been any change.

He’s not sure how long he’s been here when something happens. He hears…something; he’s not sure what, just a noise and turns to see something in the distance. Stiles springs up, heart pumping loudly in his ears because this is new and he’s going out of his mind with boredom and he needs to do something besides dwelling on his thoughts.

He starts walking but it doesn’t get any closer. He tries running, but the same result happens. Frustrated, Stiles turns away in anger and starts to walk away only to trip over the damn thing. Letting out an ‘oomph!’ from the impact, he looks down to see the multi-ringed stump of a huge and old tree.

“What the hell is this doing here?” he mutters, pushing himself back up to stare down at it.

“It is the Nematon,” someone says behind him. Stiles jerks back and turns to stare at the woman standing behind him.

“…Mom?” he asks, voice cracking from so many emotions building behind that one word.

The woman shakes her head sadly. “No, I am not your mother. I have only taken on her form to speak with you. It seemed prudent to wear a form you might respond favorably to,” she says with a shrug.

“If…If you’re not her, then who are you?” Stiles asks warily.

“I am the Nematon, or the force that resides within the tree,” the Nematon says.

“All right, first off, what the hell is a Nematon?” Stiles asks, frowning at the woman.

“I am a sacred place. A place of worship for Druids,” the Nematon says, taking a seat on the stump. “Or I was before that hunter Gerard Argent had me cut down.”

“Okay, so what does that have to do with me?” Stiles asks, crossing his arms.

“Nothing and everything. For some reason, you are tuned into the Nematon’s magic and to me. But it is not conscious, at least not yet,” she says.

“What do you mean not conscious?” Stiles asks confused.

The same brown eyes he sees every day in the mirror turn to look at him before turning away and she waves a hand in the air. The air along the path she passes through ripples and darkens like ink in water. Slowly, an image forms in the darkness.

Stiles sees himself on a hospital bed hooked up to multiple machines. His dad is next to him, still in his uniform and holding Stiles’ hand as he slumps over, asleep and resting on his arms on the bed. “That…that can’t be right,” Stiles whispers, feeling his stomach drop.

“You know that this is the truth. The night that your classmate Jackson, also the Kanima, was killed and brought back was the night Gerard had you taken and beaten. It was too much for your body and mind so you shut down and are currently in a meditative coma. Until the time is right, you will not waken,” she says simply.

“When the hell will the time be right?” Stiles asks harshly, turning away from the image to glare at her.

“That I do not know. Even I, as powerful as I have become over the years, cannot see the future. It is clouded at the moment,” she says.

“Can…can you use a different form? I don’t like you looking like my mother,” Stiles says.

She nods and changes, her hair growing out and darkening to black. Her skin takes on an olive cast and when she looks back up at Stiles, her eyes are a burning red. She smiles at him.

“Who are you supposed to be now?” Stiles asks peevishly, though he has a niggling suspicion that he knows already.

“I am Talia Hale,” she says.

“How do you know Derek’s mother?” Stiles asks. He remembers her only vaguely from his childhood as an imposing woman that he and his mother had met a few times at the grocery store.

“I know her from her many visits to my tree,” Talia says.

“Oh, okay. Um…so where am I?” Stiles asks, wanting to change the conversation to things less confusing.

“In the place between life and death. At the moment, your spirit is separate from your body and can now move freely between this plane and the living plane,” she tells him.

“Oh, um…why am I here?” he asks the obvious question.

“I do not know but something has drawn you here. Perhaps you are needed,” Talia says softly, frowning.

Stiles stops listening to her as the image on the black space shifts and it is lighter in his windowed room. The occupant has changed now, Isaac just settling into the chair his father had occupied.

“Why is Isaac in my room?” Stiles asks himself. “Can I hear what he’s saying?” Stiles asks, turning to Talia. Stiles listens silently as Isaac goes on about the week. About Derek and Scott slowly getting closer to some form of friendship. About Boyd and Erica still being missing and Stiles shifts forward at that news.

“What does he mean they’re missing?” Stiles asks.

“It appears there is another pack in Beacon Hills…an Alpha pack,” Talia says, eyes distant as if she is seeing something Stiles can’t. “They have the two Betas at the moment. They have held them since you were beaten, so nearly two months,” Talia informs him plainly.

Stiles doesn’t even want to poke at the thoughts swirling through his head at the words two months. He’ll panic later. “Do you know where they are?” he asks quickly before she can go on.

Talia nods and the view changes. Instead, it shows a dimly lit square room. Erica and Boyd are huddled together, Erica in Boyd’s arms as she shakes softly. He can’t hear what is going on and he doesn’t ask to. “Is there any way to free them?” Stiles asks, never looking away from the two Betas.

“It is hard to say. I do not know what you can do in this form,” Talia admits.

“But you said I can go into the living world, plane, whatever you want to call it. If I can go there, can I affect anything? You know, touch stuff or am I like a ghost and can pass through things?” Stiles asks, looking away finally.

Talia stares back at him, crimson eyes unreadable as she searches for answers. “It…it is possible that you could affect the living world right now. As your body is not dead, you are still a part of it,” she admits.

“How do I get there?” Stiles asks, jumping up and pointing at the image. Before the words even finish coming out of his mouth, Stiles is there. Talia is still with him, though her form is somewhat faded, merging with the shadows. Only her eyes remain solid, glowing eerily in the dark.

Sometime while he talked with Talia, Erica had stopped shaking and she and Boyd lie quietly. “Can they see me?” Stiles whispers to Talia.

“No, not yet, not unless you want them to,” Talia says.

“Okay, how do I get them out?” Stiles asks himself, turning to survey the room. The room is large, but echoes strangely. The walls are lined with small doors with locks, some just thin rectangles, others larger. “It…it looks like…,” Stiles starts, turning in a full circle. “It looks like a bank,” Stiles says frowning. “It’s a vault,” Stiles whispers in an ‘ah ha’ moment as he turns to see the fourth wall and finally understanding what the circular portion is. “Here’s the door.”

How to get them out though, he thinks to himself. He pushes on the door and though he doesn’t go through, it doesn’t budge. “Can I see the outside of the door?” Stiles asks.

Instantly, they are on the outside of Boyd and Erica’s prison. It looks like any other vault door he’s seen on TV with the big handle, but instead of lock, he sees a combination dial. “If Lydia were here, she could tell me how many combinations there are for that thing,” Stiles says softly to himself.

“Do you know the combination?” Stiles asks Talia.

“I am not all knowing and your human contraptions mean nothing to me,” she says evenly.

“Jeez, okay, no need to rub it in. Alright, no using the combination. Could I maybe…I don’t know, unlock it with force?”

Stiles turns to ask Talia his question just as his hand brushes the dial and suddenly, he can see inside the door, how it works. “Oh…I…wait a second,” Stiles mutters, studying the parts of the lock. “This goes here, that to there and to make it move, I would need to push…this,” Stiles says and does just that.

What he’s not expecting is for his hand to actually touch the piece of metal and move it. It gives a loud click and the rest of the pieces move with it. The bolts slide back and suddenly, the door is opening slightly, letting in a breeze of air into the stale room.

 Excitedly, Stiles grabs the handle without thinking and yanks it open, expecting to see Boyd and Erica already at the door. Except, they haven’t moved from their spots, eyeing the door as if it is poison. “Why don’t they move?” Stiles asks peevishly.

“They think it is a trick by one of the Alphas that have captured them,” Talia says, standing next to him.

Stiles growls loudly. “Boyd, Erica,” he yells. They both bolt up as if stung, looking around for some noise.

“Did…did you hear someone?” Erica asks.

“Move!” Stiles yells and suddenly, the two are staring at him as if they can see him.

Finally though, they jump up, making a mad dash out of the bank. Stiles follows them, but it seems that since the door was locked, none of the Alphas stayed to guard the two Betas. The bank is deserted. Once they are clear of the building, Stiles hangs back as they disappear down the street.

“Did they see me?” Stiles asks.

“For a moment, when you yelled. They will head for the one called Scott and then to Derek,” Talia tells him. Stiles sighs in relief at finally being able to do something. He feels tired though. “You should rest. You have exerted a lot of magic to do what you have done,” Talia says. Stiles nods silently and the world around him fades first to white and then to black.

~*~

Scott’s just closing up the clinic for the night when the hairs on the back of his neck stand up. He turns quickly, sensing someone is watching him. He doesn’t see anything at first, eyes scanning the parking lot and the trees on the other side of the rode.

He’s not expecting to see Erica and Boyd to step out from behind a tree, Boyd keeping a staggering Erica from falling even as he himself keeps an arm braced against the tree to keep him from falling over.

“Boyd! Erica! What…how…where have you been?” Scott gets out finally, making a mad dash across the street to stand in front of them.

“Later, we need to get somewhere safe,” Erica grits out, her jaw tight. It’s a week before the full moon and even now she can feel its pull.

“Yeah, of course. Do…do you want me to take you to Derek’s?” he asks as he puts an arm under Erica’s shoulder and helps her stagger across the street where his car is parked. Man is he glad he has the car tonight and not his bike.

They don’t answer until they’re in the back seat of the car, curled up. “I’m…not sure. Would he want us back?” Boyd asks.

“Of course! We haven’t been lazing around these last two months. We’ve been looking for you everywhere but we just couldn’t find you. Derek…he regrets letting you leave, though he tries to hide it. I think he blames your capture on himself,” Scott finishes softly.

“Oh,” Erica says softly, wringing her hands. “Yeah, I…take us to Derek,” she says quickly. Boyd nods as well. Grinning, Scott turns back around and starts the car, backing out of the parking lot.

~*~

Derek frowns as he hears a car pull up to the building, Scott muttering softly, though Derek can’t understand what he’s saying. Shrugging it off, he goes back to the maps he’s been going over, trying to figure out the next place to start searching. Isaac is puttering around in their tiny kitchen, trying to decide what to make.

Derek doesn’t register anything different until the sound of three heart beats registers in his hearing, drawing him from his thoughts and he looks up at the loft door.

It opens a few seconds later, and Derek’s heart skips a beat as he takes in the haggard appearance of his two missing betas. He rushes for the door, helping Boyd stay up right as Scott continues to support Erica. Between the two of them, they get them to the couch where they crash.

“Scott…what…how?” Derek asks, turning towards the teen.

“They found me. They wanted to wait until they got somewhere safe before answering any questions,” Scott says with a shrug. Isaac’s already insinuated himself between the two, small whimpers escaping his throat as he pulls the two close, holding on for dear life.

Derek settles on the coffee table in front of them. He wants to reach out and touch but he restrains himself until they indicate it will be accepted.

Finally, Boyd pulls away from the Isaac sandwich they’ve made and looks at the Alpha. “Derek,” he says softly.

“Boyd,” Derek says back. “What…what happened?” he asks softly.

He shifts around, settling more into the couch, though he keeps an arm around both Isaac and Erica. “That night…when we left…the hunters and Allison,” he glances at Scott who winces but doesn’t say anything, “they hunted us down. They took us down but didn’t kill us. We woke up in the basement attached to wires and batteries so we couldn’t shift.”

Boyd swallows and continues. “Stiles was there. He was there when we woke up. They hurt us for a while then switched to him. Gerard seemed to take great pleasure in beating him. God Derek, he kept fighting them until they knocked him out cold. They kept going for a bit longer afterwards and then Gerard stopped them. Told them to take him up top to the van. They just left us there, strung up and being electrocuted. It wasn’t until hours later that Chris Argent came down. He turned off the power and told us to run.”

He pauses for breath then continues. “We were coming back here when the Alpha pack attacked us. We didn’t even stand a chance. They took us to that old bank downtown. You know the one that was robbed years back. They kept us locked in the vault. We were there the whole time.”

“How did you escape?” Scott asks before Derek can.

Boyd and Erica exchange glances before Boyd shrugs and looks back at them. “Stiles.”

“What?” Derek asks in confusion.

“I know it sounds weird. We were in that vault for so long. The only time it opened was when they came in to feed or torment us. Then tonight it opened. We didn’t do anything. We’d stopped trying to escape by then. We were too weak to fight anyways. Only, no one was at the door. It just seemed to open on its own. We heard a voice call our names and we weren’t sure who it was but then all of a sudden, there’s Stiles standing at the door yelling at us to run. We ran as quickly out of there as we could. I thought Stiles was right behind us but then when we looked behind us, no one was there and the vault door was closed again,” Boyd finally finishes.

“You don’t believe us, do you?” Erica says, the first time speaking since their arrival.

“It’s not that I don’t…it’s just…” Derek starts unsure how to explain it to them.

“It’s couldn’t have been Stiles,” Scott finally says softly.

“It had to be him. He was there as plain to see as you guys,” Erica says, getting angry and loud.

“Stiles is in a coma right now,” Isaac finally says, voice subdued.

“What?” Erica asks, her anger evaporating at his words.

“That night, when Gerard and the other hunters beat him, they did a lot of damage. They left him on his front lawn. The doctors did what they could but they don’t know when he’ll wake up…or if he’ll ever wake up,” Scott says softly, hands clenching into fists by his side.

“No…no, that can’t be right. He was there. How could he…he shouldn’t…” Erica tries to speak, her hands shaking.

Derek can’t take it anymore and stands up, settling on the couch next to Erica and pulling her into his side, shushing her softly.

“I’m sorry we left. We were just so scared, but it wasn’t you Derek,” Erica gets out between clenched teeth as she tries to get herself under control.

“I never meant for this to happen, you guys know that right?” Derek asks, pulling back to look at the two, reaching out to lay a heavy hand on Boyd’s shoulder. “This wasn’t how things were supposed to go. You were right to leave. Things were, are, fucked up right now and I don’t know if or when they will settle down. If…if you still want to leave, I’ll help you get out of Beacon Hills without the Alpha Pack knowing and you can go where you wish,” Derek finishes in a rush.

The two betas look a little shell shocked by hearing Derek speak so much in one sitting. Finally, Boyd shakes his head. “No, I don’t think we can. We tried running from our choice once and it nearly killed us. Besides, there’s safety in numbers, right?” he asks, looking at Erica, who nods sharply.

Derek deflates at their words, relief bleeding out of his frame as he pulls the three betas in close, Isaac making a happy sound, Scott rolling his eyes but placing comforting hands on the returned betas.

Things weren’t good. There was still an Alpha Pack and Stiles was still in a coma, but their small pack was back together, though it was fragmented. Whether it survived to see a better future, was an unknown though.

**End.**


End file.
